Average Cost: $7.95
Official URL: www.sunthingscharming.com
Rating:

I’ve always used sunscreen and sunglasses. Mostly when I’d be outside in the direct sunlight for long periods of time on a hot and sunny day. I know, I know, even on overcast days the UV rays can be just as dangerous and maybe even more so… Somehow I would conveniently ignore this fact. Not anymore.

Curiosity compelled me to try out Turner Tags. They are a simple string of 9 UV-reactive beads with a charm at the bottom. When they are exposed to UV rays, they change from white to a bright color. Seeing the different patterns in how the beads changed color and when they changed color awakened a healthy paranoia that has me coating both myself and my son every time we head out the door for more than 15 minutes.

It’s not often that you can say that a $7.99 item has truly changed your behavior and health for the better. However, that is exactly what has happened to me with Turner Tags.

HOW THEY WORK

The charms are made of 9 UV-reactive beads in different colors. They start out white, and change to varying degrees of intensity based on how strong the UV rays are.

I wanted to know just how well these things worked, thinking at first that they may just be responding to visible light. Not quite. I hung them in a brightly lit window just behind the glass, and they barely hinted at color after multiple hours.

I carried them outside at dusk after a sunny day and they changed color slowly, only becoming half as dark as they would have earlier.

I carried them outside during a rainstorm, and they didn’t change color at all. But they surprised me by becoming their most vibrant  hues on an overcast day that I would have otherwise assumed safe.

I wore them just under some UV-protective clothing and observed the results. I slathered them with sunscreen, and hung them under the “sun canopy” of my son’s stroller which revealed the interesting result that the sun canopy deflected overhead light but offered zero protection against reflected UV rays.

At the end of my experiments I realized that the real way that Turner Tags work is not simply changing color with UV exposure. The real way that Turner Tags work is by gently and continuously reminding us of the invisible threat of UV rays, and modifying our behavior over time.

THE ORDERING PROCESS

The ordering process is fun. You get to choose what colors you want and how you want your beads arranged (specify this in the order form), and which charm you want at the bottom of the tag. Each tag is custom-made for your order. I love supporting small companies that have interesting and unique ideas. SunThingsCharming definitely fits into this category.

AESTHETIC

The beads come in blue, orange, purple, red and yellow and you can arrange them however you want during the ordering process. After every 3 beads is a rounded silver bauble, and at the bottom of the turner tag you can choose a silver charm. SunThingsCharming offers charms in the shape of a bottle, cloth diaper, pacifier, rocking horse, stork basket, teddy bear, skin cancer ribbon, “hope”, “faith” or “love”.

All of the different looks are cute. For maximum usefulness I’d recommend that at least a few of your beads be one of the darker colors such as red, blue, or purple. The changes in the yellow beads can be harder to pick up on.

PACKAGING

My turner tag arrived packed in a cute little organza pouch with a ribbon-pull, two “sun protection” pamphlets including “Sunproofing your baby” and “”Sunsmart Kids from the skin cancer foundation. A card with an extra bead attached with a ribbon for testing out your sunblock, and an instruction sheet.

I love it when extra information is included with a product for no purpose other than enhancing the value of the product. And the little pouch is useful for keeping the tag save in the diaper bag when I want to take the turner tag along but don’t want to use it just yet.

INSTRUCTION SHEET

Use of the turner tag is quite straightforward, but an instruction sheet is included anyway. It tells you how to interpret the colors of the tag (pastel means you’re in the shade, darker colors tell you that it’s time to cover up, apply sunblock and limit your time in the sun). The instruction sheet also suggests a list of places where the Turner Tag can be used. Strollers, ring-slings, even as a cute and useful embellishment to the wrapping of a gift for a new mom.

SAFETY

The parts of the Turner Tag are small and can be choking hazards so they should be kept away from young children. This is clearly stated on the packaging. The obvious is also noted: The turner tag is an alerting system and not a replacement for things such as sunscreen.

BOTTOM LINE

This is a GREAT gift for anyone who is cautious about exposure to the sun, and an even better gift for anyone who frequently goes outside without thinking about sunblock. It’s a great little “nagging reminder” to apply sunscreen on the days we wouldn’t otherwise think about the sun.

My Turner Tag has given me a wonderful gift of sun awareness, one that both myself and my son will benefit from.